But this is of no use. The clanking sound cannot be covered up at all. If there is something nearby, whether it is a human or a ghost, it should be attracted.
There was no sound on the other side, which could only mean that everything had ended long ago and they had arrived too late.
After a long wait that seemed like a whole year, a passage was finally cleared in the rubble for people to climb through. Wadding climbed in first, followed by Kraft.
The top is less than four fingers away from the back, and there are sharp-edged stones below the chest and abdomen. You need to use your arms to support your body slightly, and at the same time tilt your head to prevent scratching your chin.
Only about two meters away, Wading's breathing in front of him became heavy. The flat space gave people the illusion of being suffocated at any time, so he instinctively began to take deep breaths to calm down the feeling of suffocation.
However, expanding the chest further compresses the space for movement. When taking a deep breath, it will be difficult to pass through a slightly narrow place, and the rock edges will hit the undulating ribs.
The main light source is only the unstable illumination from the torch behind him. After being blocked by obstacles, his figure looks like he is crawling between the upper and lower jaws full of molars, and there is a bottomless throat in front of him.
"Relax, control your breathing, you can get through." When he noticed that the person in front of him was breathing heavily and gradually stopped, Kraft easily guessed the situation.
He also had the same feeling of claustrophobia induced by environmental and psychological pressure, but he had long been used to it. Compared with the extreme sense of confinement that cut off his mental senses, it was now almost like walking in the corridor, and it was difficult to stir up trouble.
"Stop for a moment, calm down, breathe in through your nose...yes, that's it, keep it up."
Wadin was not a fool. After receiving the reminder, he quickly calmed down his breathing and adjusted himself. After thanking him in a low voice, he put the sword hanging on his waist, which was getting stuck from time to time, in front of him and continued to crawl.
The only thing they could bring with them was sidearms. Fortunately, there were plenty of supplies on the opposite side.
The total distance was only five steps, and it took them nearly ten minutes to climb over. Kraft doubted whether they would have a chance to crawl back if they really encountered something on the other side.
But that thing must have really left. Until they got out of the gap and carefully stepped into the dirty puddle, there was no more alarming sound.
Only when you enter the water vapor here can you truly realize how dense it is. It is not simply a state caused by humidity, but the vastness you feel when you are close to a large area of water.
The almost solid water mist blocks the lighting and covers things outside the light path.
Collecting torches from the broken boxes, dipping them in oil and burning them, the whole scene was lit up before your eyes.
A sticky trail mixed with reddish brown wandered through the passage, winding like runes and disappearing at the entrance to the stone chamber on the left in front.
Overall, it was cleaner than expected. There was basically no large blood stains, and there were no obvious signs of fighting. The residents carrying supplies were wiped out without much resistance.
Just like the never-before-seen waters that exist only in imagination, it stretches out its flexible and slender mouthparts, penetrates into the shelter that people think is safe, and sweeps the place away and licks it clean.
The two looked at each other, and Kraft read what Wardin meant:
Continue to go?
He nodded, avoided the suspicious slime, and entered the stone room that had served as a temporary camp.
The water accumulation inside was even more serious, forming a rippling shallow water, soaking in the empty coffin and various debris, and erasing most of the traces.
The accumulated water came from the crack leading to the sewer. It can no longer be called a crack. The earthquake severely damaged the stone wall on the side of the sewer, expanding the crack into a large hole for normal walking, and water poured into the room through it.
The situation at that time was probably in a hurry. The food that had just been opened, a little firewood, and the boots that had been replaced were all floating around, and there was only time to hurriedly move other things first.
This also directly leads to the neglect of incoming dangers, and advance preparation is basically useless.
"Do you think you can still find them?"
"The likelihood is low."
Kraft used a more polite expression. In fact, disappearance should be equated with death. It was not that it was taken away by a wild beast, but that it could be rescued by following the traces.
To be more pessimistic, the possibility of even finding remains is very small. Most of those people have become an integral part of something.
But the relatively small amount of blood loss seems to have left Brother Wadding with some illusions.
They passed through the hole created by the earthquake and stepped on the water flow to enter the sewer. The arched structure of the cave roof was relatively stable and remained largely intact with incredible quality. It was simply designed for this purpose.
Even so, the visible misalignment of the masonry still indicates that the life of this ancient project is approaching the end.
The two of them continued walking down, waiting for the roar of the giant well to swallow up other sounds.
However, the roaring sound of falling water never came, and was replaced by a more spacious and distant sound.
After walking out of the tunnel, I stood where the hall should be. The stepped structure that was sunken down layer by layer and the giant hexagonal well had disappeared. Only the slopes made of disintegrated boulders were left in my field of vision, paving down at a steep angle, pointing deeper.
An invisible space.
The bottom of this majestic structure is actually mostly empty, and it has reconnected with the outside world after being destroyed.
The thick mist comes from here, evaporating from below and blown in by unknown air currents.
Kraft picked up a piece of gravel at his feet and threw it down.
It jumped and hit in the darkness outside the field of vision, making harsh or crisp sounds, ending with a distant muffled sound as it hit the water, without eliciting any echo from beginning to end.
The range cannot be estimated at all, at least it is much larger than this hall, and exceeds the distance that sound waves can return.
In addition to the sparse small waterfalls, another lighter, but much more rhythmic sound can be heard. It is the sound of the wide water surface being pushed steadily and smashed against the rocks.
The water laps against the banks of irregular ruins, pouring into the irregular gaps, competing for space with the gas inside, producing a hoarse whimper like a primitive bone instrument.
Perhaps it was just caused by mental stress and imagination. Through the thick fog, a changing light spot appeared for a few seconds, accompanied by the sound of water splashing like a big fish leaping, and then quickly disappeared.
The two of them stopped here, and going down would be a completely unknown territory that was no longer suitable to enter rashly.
Previously, Kraft had always been curious about the huge amount of drainage around Dunling. It was not directed into the river but went underground. How much water storage capacity could be accommodated without overflowing?
Now he knows what's going on.
"Do you want to prepare anything before you come back?" Seeing the professor thoughtfully, Wading asked.
"Can you bring the boat down?"
"Why? Where is that place?"
"A lake, an underground lake." Standing at the entrance formed by the collapse, a corner of the water that had not seen the light of day for millions of years showed to them. It had been buried deep under the city for too long, and it was like amniotic fluid, pregnant with something that was growing.